View full sizePD fileRTA tracks the movement of every bus and train. Soon, that same information will be available to riders.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — RTA riders -- even those waiting at a stop -- will soon be able to use smart phones and other devices to find out when the next train or bus really will arrive.

The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority plans to launch the service June 18 on its Web site, riderta.com.

RTA is catching up to transit systems in other big cities, where riders have been able to check real-time arrivals for a while now.

"We know it will help ridership and customers," RTA General Manager Joe Calabrese said before a demonstration Tuesday to the RTA board.

By using NextConnect, riders can select a route, stop and direction to find out when the next bus or train will arrive.

NextConnect users can also call up a route on Google Maps and track where the bus or train is located.By clicking on a stop, they can check arrivals.

Riders can sign up for an email notice on arrival times too. A text-message service won't be available at the start but should be ready down the road, officials said.

RTA has used a GPS-based system to track its buses and trains for years. It spent $173,000 for a feature to bring the information directly to riders. But it took a year to integrate the systems and work out the kinks, officials said.

In other cities, developers took the real-time data and created free applications, better known as apps,for smart phones and other devices.

RTA hopes that happens here. If not, the transit agency might bid out the application development, said spokeswoman Mary McCahon.

Follow Us

cleveland.com is powered by Plain Dealer Publishing Co. and Northeast Ohio Media Group. All rights reserved (About Us).The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Northeast Ohio Media Group LLC.